Shadows of Faith
by wiccawitch07
Summary: *Formerly Break the Silence.* After Sasuke uses her, Sakura gives up on the idea of a real love. Ino can't let that happen to her best friends so she decides to play matchmaker. Shikamaru and Sakura had more than just a lost faith in common.   Shika/Saku
1. Losing Faith in Love

**A/N: Ok well this idea has been plaguing me so I've decided I must work on it. The chapters are kind of short but I felt the breaks were needed there so oh well. I hope you enjoy it anyways and can ignore any weird junk that crops up and doesn't fit with the Naruto world. We call it fan fiction for a reason. Kakashi do the honors please?**

**_Kakashi: "Wiccawitch doesn't own anything Naruto. She just likes to make up stories and fantasize about the characters like I do with Icha Icha Paradise. I don't blame her one bit. You shouldn't either."_**

Chapter 1 – Losing Faith in Love

His hands trailed fire across her body, bruising and harsh and demanding. His kiss was possessive and insistent. He wanted her. It thrilled her to her no end. After all this time, it was finally happening. Sasuke was finally returning her love. She didn't mind that things had progressed so quickly. After all, it wasn't as if they barely knew each other and she had loved him since she was a child. She had always known he would be her first and now all her dreams were coming true. Things would finally go back to normal.

She was shivering at his touch as he divested her quickly of her clothing. His mouth biting hungrily at her throat, his teeth sure to leave bruises in the morning. But she didn't care; it was proof that he was really here with her, really wanting her. His hands gripped her wrists and shoved them roughly to either side of her head pressing them securely into the mattress beneath her. His head rose from her neck and she caught his gaze for a moment and a chill ran down her spine. His eyes! They weren't the fathomless black depths she had expected, but the bright red sharingan he was famous for.

And then he pressed into her and she had to squeeze her eyes closed at the pain. He spared her none of it and took his pleasure from her with harsh fast thrusts. She didn't mind because this was what she wanted, to give him pleasure. He took her several more times that night lifting and positioning her like a rag doll to his whim. There were no passionate whispers or declarations of love, but she hadn't expected as much; he wasn't the declarative type. She could just feel it in the way his hands clawed at her desperately and his mouth met her own with bruising intensity.

When he had placed her above him to straddle his waist, his fingers had dug into her hips with every move she made. She had felt especially empowered when he had rewarded her with a moan of pleasure. And then the world had cracked. When he was finally spent he rolled away from her and began to dress. "

Sasuke," she whispered her eyes bright. He turned to look at her as he pulled his high collared shirt over his head. His eyes still the bright red sharingan and she wondered briefly if all Uchiha eyes awoke when their holders were aroused. She stood up and walked over to him keeping the sheet wrapped around her. She stood before him and leaned forward gently pressing her lips to his.

"I love you Sasuke. I always have," she whispered looking up at him for his reaction. The red drained from his eyes and he blinked at her. He reached forward and yanked the sheet from her hands exposing her to him once again. One of his hands went to her waist and the other gripped her by the hair at the nape of her neck as he strode across the room pressing her back with his advances until her back hit the cool wall behind her.

He pressed into her hard letting his weight smother her as he loomed over her. His knee was wedged between her legs and his hand at her waist was pressing into what were already bruises. He yanked her head back to look up at him. "Don't cover yourself like you're modest. I've seen it all and I'll see it whenever I want. You are mine to do with as I please." Her eyes grew wet at his confession. Sasuke wasn't the most poetic of men, but he had claimed her and she was touched.

And then he slapped her. She blinked shocked for a moment as she stared at him bewilderedly and blood ran from her lip. He dipped his head and ran his tongue across the corner of her mouth sucking the bleeding lip between his own.

"Make no mistake Saukra," he said his voice low and harsh, "This isn't love. It is power. I own you. You are mine to do with as I please and so I did. I'll take from you what I want. I don't love you. You're just convenient. You've been offering yourself to me for years, so don't act so surprised. If you wanted to be used that badly how could I refuse?" He released her and turned away.

"I won't be back. I've had what I want from you." She slid down the wall the tears pouring down her eyes as she realized how stupid she had been. Sasuke was a lost cause. He was evil and she knew it. Her eyes glazed over as her mind worked furiously to keep from collapsing in on itself. He had been right. She had offered herself to him. What had she expected? That he would come strolling home to Konoha and marry her? That he would give her the tender love and devotion she had read about in fairly tales? How could she have been so naïve? Those weren't real. Fairy tales didn't exist. Bright green eyes lost their light that day as Sakura lost faith in love.


	2. Rebuilding

Chapter 2 – To rebuild confidence

Ino stared across the table at her best friend. She looked so broken. Ino knew that look. Her family was trained in psychology. She knew the look in her friend's eyes was the haunted look of someone whose memories were plaguing them, but no matter how she tried, Sakura would not tell her what had caused her to become so lifeless. Even Naruto, clueless as he usually was, had asked her if she knew what was plaguing their pink-haired friend.

"I was thinking of working on my scrapbook today," Ino commented off handedly. If her friend wouldn't tell her exactly what was wrong with her, she was going to find a way to figure it out. She may not be able to read her mind, not that she would be willing to try it with how broken she looked, but she could still use her deductive skills to get an idea. She hadn't been on a team with Shikamaru for so long without being at least mildly intelligent. "Would you like to help?"

Sakura smiled weakly trying to keep her mask of nonchalance in place, "Sure."

They sat in the floor of Ino's room, her pictures spread around them. Ino was determined to get to the bottom of this, one way or another. She began to decorate a page keeping an eye on her friend as her gaze traveled over the photos. Ino knew that this kind of hurt could only come from another person and she was rewarded with a lead as Sakura's eye caught a particular picture and she flinched. Ino inclined her head to catch a look and surprise flitted across her features as she recognized the scowling face of Sasuke.

Ever vigilant in her studies Ino began to do the best she could to repair what she now realized was a broken heart, broken trust, and broken faith. Ino picked up the picture of Sasuke, watching as Sakura instinctively wrapped her arms around herself.

"Well I guess I can throw this out," she commented. Sakura's eyes met hers.

"It isn't like we are going to see him again." Her friend flinched once more.

"I just wish he had given me the time of day just once," she sighed wistfully trying to open up the conversation for her friend to confess that she was finally struggling with giving up on her juvenile crush.

Sakura's eyes narrowed harshly, "No you don't," she answered coldly and Ino's eyes grew wide as she realized the implications of the statement.

"But…. But Saksuke hasn't been in the village since the night he set fire to the Uchiha complex 2 years ago," Ino insisted. Sakura did not correct her.

"You mean you saw him?" Ino asked incredulously. Sakura nodded unbidden tears welling up in her eyes.

Ino knelt before her and grabbed her shoulders, "Sakura, what happened to you?"

And then the story spilled forth. They both cried and it took Sakura the better part of 3 hours to get through everything since she frequently had to stop to breath properly.

"Sakura," Ino cried, "Why haven't you ever told me?"

"Because now that I've said it out loud," Sakura whispered, "I can't pretend it never happened."

Ino wasn't sure what to say to that. She understood completely her friends wish to block out the painful memories, but she knew from her studies that she had to push past them. Ino looked over at her scrapbook the open page declaring the empty place for a picture to show 'the best guy in the world'.

Determined she picked up her pen and made a long rectangle on the side of the page and wrote "Because he's:" at the top.

"Fine then. We will just have to make up our own guy since Sasuke is obviously far from perfect. We deserve better."

Sakura's lips twitched in a slight smile. She had thought her friend would hate her, that what had happened would change the way she looked at her and she was eternally grateful for how normal Ino was treating her. And even more grateful that she was willing to put the incident in the past and move on.

The girls laughed and joked and gossiped for the rest of the afternoon, creating traits for their dream guy. Simple things from 'good looking' to more complex criteria such as 'at least Jounin level shinobi' graced Ino's list of traits. When the sun began to go down Sakura bid her friend good night and Ino smiled to see some of the light returning to her friend's eyes. She shut the door behind her and took another look at their list.

Because he's:

Good looking (but doesn't know it)

Chivalrous (but not chauvinistic)

Jounin shinobi (but not cocky)

Easy to Talk to

Caring

Funny (but not goofy)

Strong

And the final one on the list had been at Sakura's insistence: Intelligent. She argued that any guy worth dealing with would have to have a good head on his shoulders. Ino stared at the empty space waiting for a picture of their mystery man as a smile ghosted over her features. She picked up one of the pictures on the floor and placed it in the empty space as she shook her head slowly. She knew who Sakura's mystery perfect man was. She laughed a bit as she glued a picture of her teammate into the empty frame.

Shikamaru's profile stood out as he played shogi with their lost sensei. 'How have I not seen it before?' Ino thought to herself, 'They have so much in common.' Her best friend and her teammate. She picked up the phone with a grin, maybe she had done all she could do to help repair her friends broken faith, but what she really needed was to realized that her perfect man wasn't just a dream.


	3. Not so subtle hints

Chapter 3 – Not so subtle hints

Sakura trudged slowly toward their favorite BBQ place. As much as she loved the place and even though she knew Ino was just trying to help, she really just wanted some time alone. She had been training relentlessly hoping to pass her Jounin exam the next day. But Ino had insisted she needed a good meal and a break to be at her best, so she had agreed to join her for lunch.

Sakura walked in and spotted Ino immediately, sitting at their usual table. "Isn't this table a bit big for just the two of us?" Sakura questioned.

"Oh, well I invited someone else too," Ino confessed. "I figured that since you were about to take your Jounin exam you would want to talk to someone who has already taken it before."

Sakura looked at her friend, "So who did you invite?"

"Hey." Sakura didn't have to wait for her answer. She turned and saw Shikamaru coming to join their table.

Ino waved him over, but when he attempted to sit next to her at the booth she slid into the area he was about to sit in, "I need my space," she shrugged when he raised his eyebrow at her. He muttered something about 'troublesome teammates' and took the seat next to Sakura.

"So Sakura is going to be taking her Jounin exam tomorrow," Ino said after they had begun their meal. She looked pointedly at Sakura, "Shikamaru is **already** a Jounin. He passed last year."

Shikamaru nodded, "I think the Jounin exam was easier than the Chunin exams were."

Sakura's eyes widened. "Really?"

He nodded again giving a small shrug, "Sure. In the Chunin exams we had to fight a match at random, lots of variables to consider. But for the Jounin exam they tell you who you will be facing, easy to strategize that way."

"Shika is really smart," Ino said, again giving a pointed look at Sakura. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at her but said nothing.

"So who will you be facing," he asked turning his attention back to Sakura.

Sakura took a deep breath, "Tsunade-sensei."

Shikamaru nodded, "Yeah it isn't uncommon for them to set you against your own teacher. It's the best way really since they usually have the same skills as you do and thus can properly challenge you."

That made sense, "Then who did you face? Since your sensei was…. I'm sorry… I shouldn't have asked."

Sakura mentally kicked herself for bringing up something so hurtful. She knew how it felt to want to keep something buried in the past.

Shikamaru shook his head, "Don't worry about it. I've moved past it now. Azuma sensei was a big part of my life once, I can't just write him off completely. But now I have to move on and realize that was just one part of my life and there are other parts that need my attention now. I had to face Kakashi. Tsunade-sama really wanted to test my strategy skills to make sure I hadn't been slacking off since Azuma sensei. Kakashi is much faster than I am and with his Sharingan (Sakura flinched at the word) I was forced to make my moves quickly before he could read what the intent was."

"You beat Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked incredulously.

Shikamaru chuckled, "Not exactly. No one ever said I had to beat him, they only said I had to 'finish the mission.' I effectively incapacitated him long enough to complete my objective. I think my entire mission was set up to see how well I could come up with a strategy to complete it. I don't think anyone expected me to best Kakashi in combat. No one expects you to be better than the person you are facing. Being a Jounin isn't about strength, they test that in the Chunin exams, it's about knowing how to use your own strengths and skills effectively."

Sakura nodded, "Good to know. I don't think I could ever best Tsunade-sensei."

Ino's phone rang and she picked it up. She grimaced and turned to her friends, "I have to go. Mom needs my help. I'll see you tomorrow." She stopped, leaning on the back of the booth Shikamaru and Sakura occupied. "Call me and let me know how it goes," she said and in one motion she pulled the hair tie from Shikamaru's hair letting it pour over his shoulders.

"Hey!" He protested as she turned to leave the store.

"Oh hush Shika! It looks better that way!" Ino giggled and he didn't miss the spark of mischief in her eyes.

"Troublesome girl." He mumbled. Sakura giggled.

She looked at him slowly. She had never seen his hair down before. It was long. Longer than her own even. Ino was right though. His hair was beautiful down.

He eyed her critically. "Alright fine, go ahead."

Sakura stared at him, "Go ahead and what?"

"Make the jokes. Oh Shika what a pretty girl you make," he said in a high falsetto.

Sakura laughed again, "I don't think it makes you look like a girl. Ino is really the one to go to for advice about looks and she says it looks better this way. I have to agree." She blushed slightly at the confession.

"Yeah, well Ino doesn't know anything about boys. I don't cut it because that would be too troublesome, but I have to keep it pulled back for missions and if I leave it down the guys make fun, so I just leave it pulled back all the time." He shrugged.

"I don't think you should listen to boys when it comes to what you look like. A girl's opinion is what really matters."

Shikamaru nodded, "That makes sense. Is there anything else you want to know about the Jounin Exam?" He asked pulling out a large sum of money and placing it on the table.

Sakura eyed his contribution and furrowed her brow, "Shikamaru that is the entire bill."

He looked down at the money on the table, "Yeah."

"And you shouldn't have to pay. Ino invited us and then left. We can just split it."

Shikamaru shook his head, "No. I always pay. Ino knows that."

Sakura's phone buzzed and she distractedly followed Shikamaru out of the store. She checked the message and rolled her eyes. "Chivalrous and Cute too! – Ino"

She looked up to see that Shikamaru was headed for the grassy hill where he would sit and watch clouds. Sakura followed.

They sat down and he nodded toward her phone, "So what is her game exactly?" he asked.

Sakura blushed, "You know Ino. She's trying to play matchmaker."

Shikamaru nodded. "You gave her a traits list didn't you?"

Sakura's eyes grew wide. "How did you know that?"

"It wasn't hard to figure out. She kept trying to point out certain factors about my character and then she left us alone. What I want to know is why you are hurting so badly?"

Sakura sucked in a surprised breath. "What do you mean?"

"It's Sasuke isn't it?" He asked softly, "I saw the way you flinched when I mentioned Kakashi's sharingan. You know Ino is just trying to help, but she can be rather troublesome. If you want to talk about it you can tell me, but if you don't you can just sit here so she will leave you alone."

"I'm not really ready to talk about it," Sakura said softly.

Shikamaru nodded and a comfortable silence fell between them. They sat for a while as the sun set. Sakura finally stood up to leave, "I better get going. I've got to get my rest for my exam."

"You'll do fine. Don't worry." He told her, but it didn't feel like the non-sincere reassurance for some reason, she felt like he was making an assessment of her. He wasn't telling her that everything was going to be ok just to make her feel better, he was telling her his conclusion to his analysis and it was oddly more comforting than any empty reassurance she had ever heard.

"Thanks," she said with a small smile.

"Hey Sakura?"

She turned back to him, "Yeah?"

He turned over on his stomach to look at her, his hair still loose and falling down his shoulders, "Did I meet all the requirements?" he asked the corners of his lips quirking upward.

She looked confused. And he amended, "On you list?" Sakura blushed brightly and a full smile broke out across his face and without waiting for an answer he rolled back over and laid his head in his hands.

Sakura shook her head at the man before her. She had known Shikamaru for a long time, but she had never really gotten to know him. She turned to head home and when the door shut her off from the rest of the world she whispered, "Yeah. You did."


	4. I am the shadows

Friendships are funny things. Some of them are obvious from the start and some of them build over time and some are completely unexpected. Sakura's friendship with Shikamaru was all these things. They had appreciated each other from the first time they met. Sakura was in awe of his intellect and quiet reserve, and Shikamaru was impressed by her strength and perfect control. One thing led to another and their time for getting to know each other had come to an end, until, out of no where, Ino had pushed them together. Sakura now spent most afternoons on the grassy hill next to Shikamaru. Sometimes they sat in silence, allowing one another to have their own thoughts, and sometimes they talked. Sakura had passed her Jounin exam and Tsunade-sensei had mentioned seeing a confidence she had never seen within her disciple.

"Shikamaru?" Sakura asked propping herself up on her elbow and looking at him.

He didn't open his eyes, "mmm?"

"How come we never became friends before?"

Shikamaru sighed and sat up to look at her. "I don't have many friends." Sakura looked at him and thought for a moment. He had Ino and Choji, but they had been his teammates. He had no choice but to get along with them. She scanned her mind of all the other ninja their age and realized that while they all knew and liked Shikamaru, no one ever seemed to be particularly inclined to his company. Shikamaru saw the comprehension cross her face and she looked a little sad.

"It isn't a big deal. Friendships can be troublesome. Unless they are willing to make the effort to come to me, I usually don't bother. I like to be by myself. I'm content to, as Asuma-sensei put it, 'lurk in the shadows.'"

Sakura turned her head slightly, "That sounds so sinister."

His lips curved up into a half smile, "The shadows are only scary to those who don't know what lies within them. It is the unknown that is scary."

Sakura smiled. She had been doing that a lot more lately.

Silence overtook them until the sound of hurried steps could be made out. Sakura waited curiously looking to see who it was and spotted Hiruzen, Asuma's son, creeping up to their resting place. He placed his finger to his lips and grinned. Sakura stifled her amusement and waited.

Hiruzen made his way stealthily toward Shikamaru and just as he reached forward to tap him, "You're not concentrating your chakra on the bottoms of your feet. I heard your foot steps since you passed Ichiraku's, Hiruzen." Shikamaru said without opening his eyes a smirk spreading across his face.

"AHHHHH. I was so close!" Hiruzen pouted. Sakura laughed at the pair.

Shikamaru opened his eyes and sat up, "Now what can I do for you?"

Hiruzen thought for a moment and then remembered his eyes growing wide, "Ka-san said the Hokage wants to see you."

Shikamaru sighed, "How troublesome." He ruffled Hiruzen's hair and rose to leave, Hiruzen trotting off after him.

Sakura left the grassy hill shortly after. It just felt empty without Shikamaru there.

He had been gone on a mission for the past week and she had been forced to spend her time with Ino, who insisted the two were made to be.

"You know, I've never really thought about it before, but Shika really does have that whole mysterious thing going for him doesn't he?" Ino asked after Sakura had explained their sometimes-silent companionship. It was all she could get Ino to talk about. She would ask what they talked about and what they did and she would tell Sakura stories of the missions he had been on. And despite all this there seemed to be this missing piece of the puzzle, something about him that was lingering just out of reach and begging to be discovered.

That night she was plagued with the nightmares that had begun shortly after Sasuke had left her. She fought her blankets in a vain attempt to free herself from her mind's torment. A scream pierced the night. She was fighting and tossing and turning and there was that cold harsh voice and those blood red eyes. And then there was darkness. Only darkness and the shadows that had witnessed the horror. And the shadows were taunting her speaking her name over and over and over again.

"Sakura, Sakura, Sakura…."

"KAI!" and they were gone. Sakura blinked her eyes open, a worried Shikamaru hovering uncertainly near her.

"Are you alright?" he asked worriedly. Sakura nodded slowly.

"What happened?" she asked bewilderedly.

"I thought you were dreaming, but you seemed to be caught in some kind of dream genjutsu." Shikamaru said the worry evident on his face.

"I was…. Sleeping…" realization dawned slowly and Sakura looked down to see herself clad in only her sleep shorts and tank top and she was wide awake.

"Shikamaru why are you in my room!" she screeched.

"I was returning from my mission and I heard you screaming so I tried to come in…. but your door was locked. You kept screaming so I…." he glanced at the door.

"If my door was locked, how did you get in?"

He grinned a bit and shrugged, "Used my shadow jutsu to unlock the door from the inside. They slide under doors fairly easily."

At the mention of shadows Sakura cringed.

"Are you sure you are alright?" Shikamaru asked reaching forward to touch her head.

She cowered. That one hesitation to his touch told him everything. All he needed to know.

"How long have you been having these nightmares?" he asked seriously.

"A while," Sakura answered vaguely.

"Since Sasuke left right?" Shikamaru pushed.

Sakura looked away from him. Nervously pushing her hair behind her ear.

Shikamaru caught her wrist lightly and pulled her to face him, "What did he do to you Sakura? What could he have possibly done to cause you to subconsciously cast a genjutsu on yourself?"

Her eyes went wide, "I'm…. I'm tormenting myself?"

Shikamaru nodded. "It was your chakra I chased away to free you. For some reason your mind is attacking itself." He was sitting next to her on the edge of her bed.

"The shadows…. " she said shivering lightly, "they laugh at me. They torment me."

"Maybe you just don't know how to talk to them," he said. His hands came together to form a few hand signals and a shadowed hand brushed across her cheek, another coming out to envelope her in a hug. She looked at him unwilling to tell him the story. The jutsu vanished.

"You don't have to tell me anything. I don't really need to know." He said seriously.

He turned to leave her and she panicked.

"Don't leave!" she said suddenly. He turned to look at her. "I …. I don't want the shadows to come back." He laughed softly.

"Sakura… I am the shadows." She looked to her wall where the moon was displaying his silhouette and his shadow gave her a small salute.

"I have to go turn in my report to the Hokage, but if you want I'll come back after. And I'll leave him with you," he gestured to his shadow.

"You can do that?" Sakura asked.

He shrugged. "I'll have to focus on it but yeah I can."

The shadow Shikamaru slid from the wall to her bed holding his arms out. "He'll keep an eye on you. And if you fall asleep again he'll alert me."

Sakura eyed the shadow skeptically.

"Think of it like a shadow clone," he said smirking, "only more literally."

He turned and left and half-way to the Hokage tower he felt her settle against his chest. He wondered if he should have told her that he was connected to the shadow clone completely. He closed his eyes and saw her laying peacefully snuggled into his arms, her pink hair hiding her face. She was talking to him, well his clone.

"What's your secret huh? What is it you worry everyone is going to find out? You can't keep everyone out forever." She whispered to the shadow.

Shikamaru opened his eyes. "I could say the same for you Sakura," he said to himself.


	5. Heads up

Chpt 5

Shikamaru walked into the Godaime's office the same way as always; with his arms behind his head and his head tilted up slightly as if he could care less what she had to say. Tsunade had long ago gotten over this slight against her. In all honesty if it weren't for the fact that the boy didn't want the responsibility she would think that he would easily be in line to be the next hokage. Tsunade remembered the first time she had realized the amount of potential that rested in the young man before her.

_Azuma was an easy-going guy so when he had come to Tsunade with a rather harried look on his face and no cigarette, she had immediately granted him audience. Azuma had looked at her seriously and nodded slowly. "I think it is a bit more serious than we originally thought," he said solemnly. Tsunade knew that he was discussing the boy that had been training under Azuma. The Nara boy had shown no inclination towards being a ninja in the academy but Azuma had insisted that there was hidden potential in the boy. He had given him an IQ test and revealed that the boy was a genius who just didn't feel challenged by the work being given to him. "What could possibly be more serious than the fact that the boy has single-handedly figured out ever secret code used by the fire country for the past century!" Tsunade had asked. "I just realized it myself, but the boy has enormous chakra reserves. He never uses them because he deems them unnecessary, but his reserves rival those of Naruto's. " Tsunade's eyes flew open wide but before she could question it Azuma continued, "He can also use his shadow technique to create actual clones. Similar to the shadow clone technique used by Naruto and Kakashi, Shikamaru can create copies of himself. However, Shikamaru splits his chakra into divisions to create exact replicas of himself that he can simultaneously exist through." "What do you mean he __**exists through**__ them?"_

"_I mean that he can see everything the clones see while simultaneously seeing what he sees, he can feel what they feel while feeling what he feels. It is like he is living separate lives simultaneously." "But that is a good thing. This could be extremely beneficial for scouting missions." Tsunade said aloud. "I think so as well. So I took the liberty of testing the ability. He can hold around 15 copies at a time and as far as I can tell he is capable of sustaining all of them indefinitely." "Indefinietly! That isn't possible. Chakra is connected to emotional state. Not to mention the taxing mental capacity required to process that much information constantly. The child wouldn't be able to function normally." Tsunade argued. "That's just it," Azuma shook his head lighting up a cigarette, "he doesn't function normally to begin with. He likes the challenge of constantly processing the information. He can keep the chakra controlled because he finds emotions tiresome and prefers to not worry about things."_

After that day, Shikamaru had been granted the top position in Konoha surveillance. His shadow clones had been dispatched to each of the other countries and some other suspicious areas to keep a close eye out for any intel. Until the death of Azuma, there had never been a problem with sustaining the clones, and since Azuma's death, Tsunade had watched closely as the boy withdrew even more from those around him.

"Shikamaru," she began slowly, "maybe you should let your clones take a vacation." He snorted, "You're going to pull the 'you-need-social-interaction-like-a-normal-human-being' thing again aren't you? Well don't bother. If you haven't noticed, I have plenty of interaction. I see Sakura almost everyday."

Tsunade scowled slightly at the name of her apprentice. That had to be what was causing glimpses of the old Sakura to surface after so long. She had noticed but decided not to question her. Tsunade knew what it was like to be a strong woman struggling. You didn't want anyone to realize you were struggling and you damn well didn't want to talk about it!

Tsunade nodded. "Fine. Just promise me that you will keep an ear out and let me know at the first sign of trouble and I'll take you off of surveillance detail for a bit."

Shikamaru's posture and demeanor changed immediately. He stood straight his hands curling into fists by his sides and his face taking on a hard expression. "Well here is your heads up. Sasuke is on his way back to Konoha."


	6. The Queen

**A/N: Sorry it has been so long! I'm super busy, but I promise I'm not completely lost! So this is a really short one, but the next chapter is going to start the battle so I thought this little segway necessary. Hope you enjoy and a special thank you to kuro-neko-chan for giving me a nudge to get back in gear with this story!**

Chpt 6

"What!" Tsunade screeched, "And you didn't feel this important enough to tell me at the beginning of this little meeting?"

"I only just found out. He is about a day away. My clone in the area caught the feeling of his chakra."

Shikamaru took stock of his clones to see if he could get a better idea of where the Uchiha heir was. Perspective after perspective slide through his being. He was cold, he was hot, he was in water, he was underground, clone after clone imparted their entire existence into him as he scanned the overwhelming amount of information for something pertinent to his investigation and then there was the feeling of warm content; a feeling he had never felt before even in his own experiences. He held fast to the perspective and honed his attention in to the particular clone to discover it was the one he had left with Sakura only an hour ago. The warm contentment coming from the girl curled on his chest as her breathing evened out and sleep claimed her. A small smile tugged at his lips as his hand absentmindedly reached up to his chest.

Tsunade watched as the boy obviously filtered through the clones his eyes slightly clouded and his body giving off an alarming variant of symptoms in response to the rapid change in perception. It couldn't possibly be good for him. One of the weaknesses for his clones was the fact that he felt everything they did, including pain. She kept a close eye on him as his skin rose with goose bumps and his fingers turned a bright red and then purple to show the extreme cold he must be experiencing, only to rapidly flood with color as sweat broke out along his body in response to his change to a warmer climate. She had often warned him of the effect his quick cycling through his various clones experiences could have on his physical body, but for now any more information on Sasuke's whereabouts was crucial. Her eyes widened as she saw a small smile quirk at his lips, this had never happened before. In fact, she couldn't recall ever seeing the boy smile sincerely in her entire life. He reached a hand up to his chest in response to whatever he was experiencing and then the cloud diffused and his eyes cleared and he was back in his own consciousness as he sank to the floor on his knees.

"He knows we know." He managed to gasp out. Tsunade nodded understanding that he was bearing the pain from the death of one of his clones at the hands of Sasuke.

"We need to prepare an interception. He can't be allowed to come into the city."

Shikamaru straightened and held her gaze with a fierce determination. "I'm going. " It wasn't a request or a statement even, it was a direct order. Tsunade considered the situation and conceded.

"Yes. You and Sakura are the best we have right now with Naruto gone for training."

"You can't send her!" Shikamaru insisted, "You can't ask her to face him. Not him."

Tsunade smiled a bit at the boy knowing his intention to protect her.

"Shikamaru, don't forget. You protect the King. There is a good reason you don't protect the Queen." She said wisely.

He considered her for a moment. The queen was the most versatile piece on the board. But Sakura… she was broken. She was fighting a war against herself. He shook his head.

"And sometimes we have to realize that the most unlikely of pieces is the one that holds the key to victory."

He turned away from her office. "Try and send her if you wish, but I promise you I won't let her go."

Sakura stirred slightly in her sleep as the shadow clone wrapped its arms possessively around her securing her to him. A small smile graced her lips as she returned the embrace a sighed whisper escaping her lips. "Shikamaru…"


	7. Shadow Realm (or the battle begins)

**A/N: Omg, I am so so sorry for how long it has taken me to get this out. I kinda wrote myself into a corner. I suck at action writing and every time I sat down to try and write this I hated the outcome. Needless to say this is like draft number 600 of this scene and I am finally appeased enough with it to post it. Thanks to everyone who is still reading and reviewing! I could really use your input to get myself out of this box I`ve written my way into. I can`t decide if I wanna let Shika play the hero or if Sakura should get to avenge herself. Love to see your input!**

**Chapter 7**

It was time. Time for a battle that he had been mentally preparing for since the first day Sakura had shared the hillside with him. His clones were dispersed around the only entrance to the city. He knew that Sasuke would be coming that way. His intelligence had been brief but reliable.

His palms were moist with sweat, his heart already climbing in rhythm. He had never beaten the Sharingan. The ability to see the chakra moving within one's body was a great hindrance. All his planning would mean nothing if the moment he attempted something his intentions were exposed.

Indeed the Sharingan was the most difficult opponent for someone who based their style off of strategy and cunning. Shikamaru let out a soft sigh. He already knew that he would not make it out of this fight. He would die here, but his only choice was to take that Uchiha bastard with him.

It was dusk when dark brown eyes met solid black. There was no need for conversation, no yelling or accusations. They both knew what was to happen here. Shikamaru's hands came together in his shadow jutsu and Sasuke's eyes shifted to their red hue. It had begun.

It was like things were moving in slow motion for Shikamaru. His clones were stationed around the entire clearing, giving him a 360 degree view of the fight, but Sasuke was all too aware of their presence. He was arrogant too, maneuvering himself quickly from one clone's view to another, forcing Shikamaru to quickly shift perspectives. They were throwing punches and kicks, blocks and counters, and some minor jutsus without really doing any damage or making much of an effort. They were feeling each other out.

And then Sasuke began with the taunts. It was expected. A genjutsu user almost always had to use some sort of verbal assaults to get into the head of their opponent, to weaken their resolve and allow an opening for their jutsu.

"I see," Sasuke said his smile growing wild. "You've grown attached to the little whore."

He quickly stepped in and placed his mouth right next to Shikamaru's ear, "Yet I can see it in your eyes that you haven't had her yet. Disappointed that she still waits for me?"

But Shikamaru was nothing if not focused and did not allow the comments to rattle him. Instead he took the close proximity as an opportunity and closed a shadow around the two of them.

"I've grown Sasuke. You may have been the prodigy, the best of the best, when we were in school, but back then I didn't have any reason to fight. I had nothing to prove to anyone, no objective. But today? Today my objective is to kill you. And when I have a goal… I accomplish it." He said as he faded into the darkness pressing in around them.

Everything was black and thick and dark. Sasuke could feel the world weigh down around him. He could see nothing, hear nothing. It seemed as if all his senses had been cut off. His entire body went on high alert straining to use some sort of sense to orient itself.

He felt a small tap on his arm and he spun immediately trying to attack in that direction but finding nothing but air. Then there was a sharp pain in his calf. He reached down and could determine through touch that there was a shurikin lodged in his calf. He could feel the bite of it in his skin, could feel the blood running from the wound, but he could not see it, and he had not heard it. He focused hard on where he instinctively knew his leg was and tried to force his sharingan to display his own chakra flow.

Frustrated that he could not see he lashed out, "What is this!?" he yelled spinning about desperate to make contact with anything to prove he was not alone in the emptiness.

"This is not darkness. My sharingan can see through darkness! What have you put me in? I am immune to genjitsu this is no trick. Where am I?"

And then he could hear it, as if it were coming from everywhere at once. The vibrations of the words coming from every direction without pause as if an omnipotent presence spoke them into existence everywhere at once.

"This is not darkness. You cannot see through this. This is the shadows. This is a darkness that cannot exist without light. A darkness you know nothing about. A black that is created from white."

And then he could feel their presence. 6 or more of them closed in a circle around him. They must be clones like the previous one he had dispatched. But he was not naïve enough to think them as simplistic as the shadow clones like Naruto's.

He had originally expected the shadow form to disappear when he hit it with a simple fire jutsu, but it had not. It had reacted as any real opponent would. It had taken the hit, regrouped, and continued its assault. He would not make the same mistake again. He reached to his back and withdrew his katana laying his hand at the base of the blade to charge it with chidori.

He spun in a circle cleaving each shadow in two with his lightning charged blade. As they fell, there was flicker of light before the darkness poured over him like ink once more.

"I am done playing games," he said as his eyes grew brighter with the shift of his Sharingan. In the darkness a purple flame seemed to rise from behind him. His eyes wept blood as the Susanoo formed in the darkness.

Shikamaru stood in the middle of the road at the entrance to the village. He was alone it seemed, unless one looked just beyond the wall where the shadow of the gate was cast. In the shadows, was the lost Uchiha looking sightlessly around him as his eyes wept blood, a lightning charged katana in his hand, and a monster forming at his back.

Shikamaru had fallen to his knees as the clones had met with that lightning blade. In the pain of six simultaneous deaths, he had momentarily lost his grip on the Uchiha, allowing him out of the shadow realm he was trapped in, but he quickly refocused all his energy on holding him in the shadow realm prison.

He had known that he would have to fight the Uchiha one-on-one, that his clones would not be able to dispatch him. He closed his eyes took a deep breath and released every clone in existence. He felt almost light headed as the chakra flooded back into his body, bringing with it the existence of some 20 clones.

He flipped through the perspectives and held close to one memory that wasn't even truly his as he prepared to go into his final battle; soft pink hair resting against his skin, warmth radiating through his chest as he felt the complete trust and care of the girl who had fallen asleep in his arms.

Shikamaru opened his eyes and stepped forward into the shadow realm to face his enemy.


End file.
